CHAPTER 8
SINCE RANDOLPH HAD BEEN A guest at her house, Katie’s father seemed to grow more and more uncomfortable. He spoke to her mother in whispers and was away from the house a lot. Randolph seemed nice enough and he and Katie’s mother got along all right. He was introduced as her mother’s distant cousin, in town on business. He was going to spend just a few nights in the guesthouse.
From the beginning she didn’t trust him. Katie had never heard her parents speak of a distant cousin, and his weird blue eyes gave her the creeps. But after a few days with him, she decided to give Randolph the benefit of the doubt. Everything was fine until that night, when she overheard her parents arguing.
“You said he was in town for just a few nights, Julie.”
“I know, Howard, but what do you want me to do? He’s my cousin. I can’t kick him out.”
“Kicking him out is exactly what we need to do.”
“Shhhhhhh. What if he hears you?”
“Hears me? Hears me? The man is in the guesthouse—how could he hear me? This is what I’m talking about, Julie. You’ve been acting strange ever since he arrived. What aren’t you telling me about your cousin? Is he a criminal or something?”
“No, no, Howard, don’t be silly. He’s just a little—a little different. He’s almost done with his business in town and he’ll be gone soon. You know how big my family is on loyalty.”
“I know, I know. It’s just that I’ve never heard you talk about him before and it seems strange you would be so inviting to someone you don’t know.”
“He’s family, Howard. I don’t have a choice. Listen, you have to trust me—everything is going to be fine.”
The conversation was over. Katie thought it was kind of weird, but didn’t give it a second thought until dinner that night.
Katie’s mother had made a really nice dinner of roasted duck, green beans, and her famous mashed potatoes.
“Katie, be a dear and go to the guesthouse. Tell Randolph dinner’s ready.”
“Sure,” Katie said. It was sunset; Katie’s favorite part of the day, when the air was cool and the sky looked pink.
When she got to the guesthouse, Katie caught a glimpse of someone with blond hair in the window. Curiousity got the best of her and she decided to take a closer look before knocking. The small window was cracked just enough for her to hear the conversation.
“The time is now, my brother. We cannot wait any longer.”
The mystery guest had a German accent. He was tall and lean like a boxer, with a crew cut. He was dressed in a very expensive suit with a tie that matched his ice blue eyes. He stood next to a small fireplace with a wine glass in his hand.
“Is this the will of the family?” Katie recognized Randolph’s voice even though she couldn’t see him from the window.
“Damn the will of the family, Randolph!” the German roared. “Too long have we sat by idle while the Beastia claim our land and collect money that should be ours. I’ve already contacted a few of the others in the area and they feel the same way. Tonight we make our own fate.”
“I can appreciate your fire and passion, but you know the Law.”
“Damn the Law. We have a perfect opportunity to strike swiftly with the element of surprise. In twenty-four hours, we can have this entire area free of any competing Elites and two members of the ruling family dead!”
Katie was so curious she missed the intentional pause in the conversation and the slight tilt of the stranger’s head as he sniffed the air. A second later, the stranger looked directly into her eyes and smiled.
“Ahhhhh, a guest,” he said.
Katie didn’t know why she ran. She could have stayed and tried to explain that she was there extending a dinner invitation. She could have made an excuse, but she didn’t. Maybe it was the way his sinister eyes locked on hers. Maybe it was the way he’d called her a guest. She didn’t know. All she could feel in that moment was every fiber in her body telling her to run, so she did. She sprinted back to the house as fast as her legs could carry her.
Katie would never be as fast as Connor, but she was a decent runner, and with her fear spurring her on, she was halfway across the yard in a few seconds. Something glided past her and before she had any time to think what it was, she reached the back door. Standing in front of her was the same man from the guesthouse, wine glass in hand. It was still a quarter full.
“Well, hello there. Aren’t you pretty,” he said.
“Faust, let her be. She’s a family member.”
Katie saw Randolph standing behind her, arms crossed. His face was scrunched up like he was worried.
The back door opened and Julie appeared. “Oh, hello.” She was surprised. “Randolph, I didn’t know you had a visitor, will he be staying for dinner?”
Before either Randolph or Katie could respond, Faust chimed in. “Yes, yes, that would be delightful.”
The dinner party of four awkwardly entered the dining room. Katie’s father was already sitting at the table pouring himself a glass of wine. Making eye contact with the group, Katie could practically read his thoughts. Great, they’re multiplying. Instead, he introduced himself and shook the stranger’s hand. Faust introduced himself to Katie’s parents and took a seat with the others at the table.
“So, tell us, Faust, what brings you to town?” Julie asked as she spooned mashed potatoes on dinner plates.
“Oh, I’m on business. Much like Randolph here.”
“How nice. Have you known each other long?”
“How long would you say it’s been, Randy?” Faust smiled at his friend, enjoying the moment. “Feels like centuries, yes?”
Randolph looked at his dinner plate with that same worried face. “Yes, a while now.”
“Katie, are you feeling all right?” her father asked.
The truth was Katie felt sick and hadn’t touched her plate. “Yes, just feeling a little tired. I think I might be coming down with something.”
“Well, try and eat something, dear,” her mother urged.
“Yes, make sure to clean your plate so you can grow up strong and fast, like me and Randy here,” Faust added.
It was the most awkward dinner Katie had ever shared with anyone. The entire time she was debating whether or not she was going crazy. Had she imagined the whole thing? What if he was just a really fast runner and the answer was as simple as that? Before Katie could come to a reasonable explanation, Faust started talking again.
“Ha! I have it, Randy. Join me tonight and I’ll spare your family. That’s a great deal, no?”
The entire table sat silent. Randolph, dressed in a clean pair of black slacks and a plain white dress shirt with black suspenders, cleared his throat and gave a nervous laugh. “Oh, Faust, don’t tease like that. They don’t know you as well as I do and might think you’re serious.”
“But brother, I am serious. Join me tonight or I will kill every single one of them.” His carefree attitude disappeared and a cruel smile crossed his face.
Katie’s father finally broke the silence. “Listen, I’m not sure what kind of sick joke this is, but it’s not funny.”
“Oh, it’s not a joke, sir. I am very serious,” Faust sneered as he jammed his steak knife into the table’s dark wood.
The room was silent. “Randy?” Looking over at Randolph, who sat pale, Faust made one final offer.
Randolph sat quiet, “I can’t—the Law.”
“To hell with the Law.” Faust’s blue eyes glazed over and changed until two black orbs were all that remained. He opened his mouth, showing four very large, very sharp fangs.
Then everything seemed to happen at once: Katie’s mother screamed and fainted; while at the same time her father jumped to his feet with a knife in his hand. Faust, quick as an arrow shot from a bow, bounded over the table towards him.
Katie’s father and Faust we’re sitting on opposite sides of the dinner table. There was eight to ten feet of space between the two but Faust covered the distance in the blink of an eye. Randolph tried to grab Faust, but it was too late. He was already on the other side of the table.
Katie sat, powerless. The events were unfolding around her at lightning speed. Before she knew what was happening, Faust was ripping her father’s head from his body. It only took a second, and her father’s body fell to the ground.
His head rolled a few feet once Faust dropped it and came to rest near Katie’s chair. She was petrified; her brain couldn’t comprehend the reality around her. Katie wanted to move, wanted to scream, wanted to do something, but she couldn’t. Instead she just sat in her chair, staring at him.
Faust grinned at her and made a move toward her mother. Instantly Randolph was there, blocking his path. “Okay, okay, Faust. By God, you are mad. You win. I will come with you tonight.”
Faust’s eyes dilated back to blue and his fangs receded giving way to his normal smile. “I knew you would come around, old friend. You have always been the reasonable one. Hope you don’t mind, I invited the others over for an old fashioned meeting before we go.”
Randolph looked defeated. “Whatever you desire, just leave them alone. They have no part in this.”
Faust took a napkin from the table and began wiping Katie’s father’s blood from his hands. He made his way slowly to where she was sitting. Katie’s heart beat faster and faster as he approached. Soon he was directly beside her, playing with her hair in long soft strokes.
Katie was shaking so hard she didn’t think she would be able to talk, but she finally found her voice. She turned on him as she fought back the tears and rage. “You’re going to pay for this.”
Something came over Katie then, something she had never experienced before. She knew the appropriate response to the past few minutes should be fear and sorrow, but all she felt was anger. Anger overwhelmed her and forced her to take action. She reached for Faust, not knowing what she was going to do; bite him, claw him, punch him—she had to do something.
Faust caught her by the neck with one hand and lifted her off the ground like a newborn kitten. He brought her eye level as she fought against his grasp. The animal rage inside of her was building. He squinted his eyes as he looked into hers. “You’re one of us, aren’t you?”
“Faust, no, we had a deal,” Randolph reminded him.
Faust seemed to mull this over in his mind. “Yes, quite right, I won’t kill her then. She can join us.”
The last thing that Katie remembered was two black eyes and Randolph screaming in the background.
“I guess I came to at some point and called you. Now I’m in the hospital,” she said, turning to Connor.
The two sat silent for a moment as Connor’s mind battled to accept Katie’s story and Katie in turn dealt with memories she knew would haunt her for the rest of her life.
“I’m so sorry, Katie.” Connor felt sorrow and anger at the same time. Her father was a good man; Connor had the pleasure of getting to know him over the course of the two years he and Katie had dated. To think he was gone forever was a shock. He could hardly picture what Katie must be going through.
“I couldn’t have imagined that though, right? Or did I?”
Connor adjusted his seat on the bed, careful not to disturb any of the tubes attached to her and pulled her in closer. “I know you have a lot of questions right now. The most important thing is that you get some rest. The doctor said you lost a lot of blood.”
Katie nodded and nuzzled herself into Connor’s strong frame. “I should never have let you go,” she said, closing her eyes. In minutes she was asleep. Connor gently stood and arranged her in the most comfortable position he could.
It was dark now. Between the time he’d time spent with Morrigan and then Katie, the day was almost over. It was near eight o’clock and the clouded sky offered a healthy dose of rain. It wasn’t a downpour, not yet at least.
Connor was exhausted from the day’s events, but he still had one more stop to make before he went home. He had to stop by his mother’s shop to apologize for being absent from work, and find out more information about his father. He knew it was crazy but he couldn’t help but think knowing about his father and his past was the key to unraveling everything. If all else failed and his mother couldn’t help him, he would head to Morrigan’s. She would know what to do.
Driving through the rain, he saw several police officers and fire trucks. Twice he was forced to pull over to let them pass. Through the rain and dark sky, he could see a cloud of smoke rising from the same street his mother’s shop was located.
Pushing his truck to dangerous speeds, he took out his cell phone and dialed his mother’s number. There was no response; he dialed again. No reply.
Nearly fishtailing onto the street, he was prepared for the worst. Sure enough, there was an army of police cars and firefighters gathered around not only her store, but three or four of the other connected shops
From what he could see, the damage to his mother’s store wasn’t extensive, nearly all of it being contained to the back wall near the loading zone. The fire was completely out now, and the back of the store was charred but still intact. It looked as though the other stores had borne the brunt of the fire’s anger.
He parked his truck in the middle of the street and ran to the front of the building past the police caution tape. He heard shouts behind him. Ignoring them, he kept going. He had to make sure his mother was safe. Bursting through the doors, his eyes met a variety of people: police officers, detectives, fire fighters, but Rebecca Moore was nowhere in sight.
“Hey,” a gruff voice said behind him. “You’re not supposed to be here.”
He was met with a middle-aged, stocky police officer sporting two bushy eyebrows that matched his mustache.
“My name is Connor Moore. My mother owns this shop. Was anyone hurt? Is she here?”
A look of forgiveness passed over the officer’s face as he grasped the situation. “No, you can rest easy, son. There was no one here when we arrived. One of our officers is on the phone with her now, explaining what happened.”
Connor breathed a sigh of relief. “How did the fire start?”
“Arson, most likely. Just waiting for the detectives to give the final word.”
“Consider the final word given,” a female detective said, walking toward the two. She was shorter, with rounded shoulders and a matter-of-fact attitude. “This one was easy: we found evidence of molotov cocktails in the store. You said this was your mother’s shop?”
“Yes.”
“Any idea of who could have done this?”
“No, I have no idea.”
He exited the area, making a beeline for his truck. It all fit. Katie’s mystery attacker, the conversation she had overheard at the guesthouse, his mother’s shop being burned. The other attack victims he learned about at the hospital must have been members of the Five Families or maybe even half-blooded descendants used as examples.
He had to warn Laren. He would explain to her later how he knew what was going on, all that mattered now was that she was warned Randolph and his companions were out for blood.